Am    lour.  Pharm. 
Mar.,  1879 
Chemical  Notes. 
125 
powder  to  become  mixed  with  ammonium  salts  in  store-rooms  or  other 
receptacles  for  chemicals. 
Organic  Chemistry. — W.  Kelbe  has  prepared  a  new  hydrocarbon^ 
by  heating  rosin  oil  (the  high-boiling  portions  of  the  product  of  the  dry 
distillation  of  colophony-resin)  with  sulphur,  to  200°C.  and  higher. 
The  same  compound  is  obtained  by  treating  the  rosin  oil  with  phos- 
phorus pentachloride.  The  hydrocarbon  is  obtained  in  white  pearly 
scales,  fusing  at  940  to  95°C.  It  is  decomposed  on  distillation,  yielding 
another  hydrocarbon,  fusing  at  86°C.  This  latter  yields  on  analysis- 
91*5  per  cent.  C.  and  8*5  per  cent.  H. 
Kelbe  does  not  propose  any  formulas  for  these  hydrocarbons. — 
.Berichte,  XI,  p.  2174. 
Merz  and  Tibiriga  have  endeavored  to  make  the  reaction  of  carbon- 
ous  oxide  upon  soda-lime,  giving  rise  to  sodium  formate,  a  commercial 
one.  They  pass  CO  over  the  soda-lime  heated  to  2000  to  250°C, 
and  obtain  as  product  the  sodium  formate.  If  the  high  temperature 
does  not  act  injuriously  upon  the  production  of  the  formate,  and  if  the 
sodium  salt  can  be  produced  cheaply,  the  question  of  manufacturing 
cyanogen  compounds  from  ammonium  formate  can  be  again  taken  up. 
Chem.  Industrie,  I,  p.  391. 
Among  the  rapid  strides  that  are  constantly  making  in  organic  syn- 
thesis may  especially  be  noted  several  that  have  been  taken  within  the 
past  year. 
Baeyer  has  made  a  complete  synthesis  of  indigo-blue.  It  is  true,  the 
process  is  too  involved  and  costly  for  practical  use  as  yet,  but  its  steps 
may  be  shortened  and  made  simpler  at  no  distant  day.  The  starting- 
point  is  benzyl-chloride,  and  it  involves  the  formation  successively  of 
phenyl-acetic  acid,  amido-phenyl-acetic  acid,  oxindol,  isatin  and,  lastly, 
indigo-blue. 
Fischer,  similarly,  has  made  the  synthesis  of  rosanilin.  Taking  tri- 
phenyl-methan  CH(C6H5)3,  from  this  is  prepared  trinitro-triphenyl- 
methan,  and,  on  oxydation,  trinitro-triphenyl-carbinol,  and,  from  this, 
rosanilin. 
Hofmann  has  shown  that  the  blue  dye-color,  cedriret,  is  the 
dimethyl  ether  of  pyrogallic  acid.  He  has  also  shown  that  the  eupittonic 
acid  of  coal-tar  is  a  hexa-methyl  derivative  of  rosolic  acid,  the  well- 
known  phenol  dye-color. — Chem.  Industrie,  I,  p.  394. 
Analytical  Chemistry. — F.  Bei  stein  gives  a  method  for  the  sepa- 
